Mar. 24—TRAVERSE CITY — A new bridge across the Boardman River is now on the horizon, but it has nothing to do with cars and trucks.
Instead of the proposed $300 million Hartman-Hammond vehicle bridge that ignited intense public debate, county officials this week approved plans for a $1 million pedestrian bridge across the river, to the delight of local hikers and nature enthusiasts.
The 160-foot bridge will connect the east and west sides of the 505-acre Natural Education Reserve, which features seven miles of wooded trails and a variety educational resources. Both the natural reserve and bridge project are managed by the Grand Traverse County Conservation District.
“What a great thing this is!” said Sally Dykhuis, a member of the Grand Traverse Chapter of the North Country Trail Association. “The [new bridge] will help people get closer to nature, even though it’s very close to the city. Making trails accessible is very important.”
At Wednesday’s regular county board meeting, commissioners voted unanimously to authorize a $400,000 recreation grant application to the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to help pay for the project, which is formally named the “Boardman-Ottaway Crossing Bridge.”
Additional funds will be raised through other grant applications and donations, said Koffi Kpachavi, executive director of the conservation district.
“We’ll be happy if we can start construction in 2025,” he said. “This is a project that everybody seems to want, not just a box to check. We get questions about it many times throughout the year, and now we have some answers.”
John Chase, director of the county’s parks and recreation department, said he was “absolutely happy” about the unanimous vote by commissioners because it shows the high level of community commitment to the project.
The new bridge will be located at the site of the old Sabin dam, which was removed in 2018 as part of a much larger river restoration project. The TBAYS soccer fields on Keystone Road are just a short walk away.
The span itself will combine a steel superstructure and timber planking for the surface, providing a passageway for both hikers and non-motorized vehicles like bicycles.
Engineered by Gourdie-Fraser architects of Traverse City, the new bridge will be designed to allow the passage of wildlife and paddlers underneath the span, while minimizing damage to the environment.
“Every single person on our staff is an environment geek,” said Kpachavi. “We’ve spent a lot of time and effort on restoring the bottomlands and shores of the river. It wouldn’t make sense to undermine that in any way.”
Prior to 2018 when the Sabin dam was removed, hikers could cross the river using the dam itself. Ever since then, accessing the east- and west-side trails in the same day was difficult, usually requiring travel by car.
Michigan’s logging era during the 19th and early 20th centuries was followed by the construction of several dams to provide power for the growing industrial needs of Grand Traverse County.
Between 1867-1921, the Union Street Dam, Boardman Dam, Sabin Dam, Keystone Dam and Brown Bridge Dam were built to provide power, but each dam also injured the area’s ecosystem by disconnecting the Boardman River from flood plains that are essential for the hydrological cycle of watersheds.
Flood plains take on and store excess water in times of flood, releasing it slowly over land and into groundwater. In that process, flood plains recharge the groundwater, and keep sediments from building up in the rivers and streams.
In 2004, Traverse City Light & Power concluded that hydropower generation at three dams on the Boardman River (Brown Bridge, Boardman and Sabin dams) were no longer economically feasible, and terminated its lease agreements with the dams’ owners (Grand Traverse County and the City of Traverse City).
A special committee was created shortly thereafter to assess those dams, ultimately leading to their removal. The multi-year dam removal project, which cost about $20 million, brought together nonprofits and local, state, federal and tribal governments.
Today, the Boardman River is a state-designated Blue Ribbon Trout Stream, known for its cool, clean waters.
Glen Chown, executive director of the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy, said his organization “totally supports” the new bridge project, calling it a perfect way to bring people into nature at a time when many are under stress or struggling with mental health issues.
“We believe everyone can benefit from the healing power of nature,” Chown said. “Our surveys show that being in nature makes almost everyone feel happier. We call it ‘Vitamin N.”
“The soccer fields on Keystone Road also attract tens of thousands of people each year,” he added. “Now those kids and their families — and many others — can enjoy trails on both sides of the river.”